Yahoo News Chargers S Derwin James suffers meniscus injury in scrimmage, expected to miss 'significant' time
Los Angeles Chargers safety suffered a meniscus injury during the team’s scrimmage on Sunday and is expected to miss “significant” time this season, according to the NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.
The extent of his injury isn’t yet known. At best, he’ll end up missing about four weeks. If he requires a full repair, James could be sidelined for several months.
The options for Derwin James, pending further medical evaluation: A meniscus trim, which can be 4 or so weeks. Or a full repair, which can be several months. https://t.co/IMdbjeWl1I
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) August 30, 2020
James went down during the second half of the scrimmage and hobbled off the field himself, according to the Los Angeles Times, and “threw his gloves aside in disgust” before walking into the medical tent.
James appeared in just five games for the Chargers last season due to a foot injury. The 24-year-old recorded 105 total tackles and had three interceptions in his rookie season in 2018.
Is Earl Thomas a legit option for the Chargers?
Should James’ injury be serious and force him out for a significant chunk of the season, the Chargers may end up looking elsewhere to replace him.
One possible option — which immediately came to fans’ minds on Sunday — could be Earl Thomas.
Thomas was released from the Baltimore Ravens earlier this month after he got into a fight with safety Chuck Clark at practice, which marked the final straw after a string of reported incidents in Baltimore. He had signed a four-year, $55 million deal with the team in 2019.
The 31-year-old is perhaps the best available safety in the league, and has been Pro Football Focus’ highest-rated safety since 2015. The seven-time Pro Bowler recorded 49 tackles and two interceptions with Baltimore last season.
The Chargers weren’t the most likely landing spot for Thomas before Sunday. There are plenty of other teams that are better suited at this point.
The Chargers will obviously want to wait and learn the extent of James’ injury before making any drastic moves to grab him, too.
Still, Thomas could end up being the perfect replacement for James if things work out.
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